Hood latch

ABSTRACT

A latch assembly for releasably latching a hinged closure structure to a vehicle body compartment structure. The latch assembly comprises keeper elements engageable by latching levers of a latch mechanism. The latching levers, of which there are two, are paired with pawls effective to hold the levers in latched condition. Each of the latching levers and the respective pawl engageable therewith have opposed cam surfaces adapted to coact when the latching lever is moved toward latching position with its pawl displaced for any reason from latch lever holding position thereby to urge the pawl into such holding position.

United States Patent Inventors Harold W. Pierce 32932 Southgate St.;Thomas A. Pulleyblank, 18542 Fremont, both of, Livonia, Mich. 48154Appl. No. 40,648 Filed May 26, 1970 Patented Dec. 28, 1971 HOOD LATCH 10Claims, 7 Drawing Figs.

U.S. Cl 292/45, 292/11, 292/25, 292/DlG. l4, 292/DIG. 43 Int. Cl E05c3/28, E05c 3/34 Field of Search 292/ l i, 24-3 l 44-66, 304, DIG. l4,DIG. 43, 216; 70/240, 241

Primary Examiner-Robert L. Wolfe Attorneys-John R. Faulkner and John J.Roethel ABSTRACT: A latch assembly for releasably latching a hingedclosure structure to a vehicle body compartment structure. The latchassembly comprises keeper elements engageable by latching levers of alatch mechanism. The latching levers, of which there are two, are pairedwith pawls effective to hold the levers in latched condition. Each ofthe latching levers and the respective pawl engageable therewith haveopposed cam surfaces adapted to coact when the latching lever is movedtoward latching position with its pawl displaced for any reason fromlatch lever holding position thereby to urge the pawl into such holdingposition,

noon LATCH BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention isconcerned with a latch assembly for releasably latching a hinged closurestructure such as a vehicle hood to a vehicle body compartment structuresuch as the compartment in which the engine is housed. Most hood latchassemblies include two latches or latching levers, one of which is aprimary latch to hold the hinged closure or hood in fully latchedcondition. The other or secondary latch has the function of preventingthe hinged closure or hood from flying upward in the event the primarylatch is not properly latched or fails.

Improperly latched hoods are usually the result of insufficient forcebeing applied in a closing direction to overcome the resistance of thehood counterbalancing springs so that the hood does not reach a fullyclosed position. It is also possible, however, that a failure ormalfunction of the latch mechanism could result in an improperly latchedhood.

The latch mechanisms frequently comprise pivoted latching levers thatare held in latched condition by pivoted detents or pawls. The detentsor pawls are coupled to a release member for movement out of latchinglever holding position. Generally, the latching levers are spring-loadedin unlatching direction and the detents or pawls are spring-loaded inlatching lever engagement direction. This combination of pivotal andspring-loaded members depends for complete operativeness on free pivotalmovement of the members about the several pivot shafts or studsinvolved.

Hood latches located at the front end of the vehicle are exposed to theelements. Road dust and water spray carrying deicing agents or mudultimately can cause malfunction of the pivoted members throughincreased friction resulting from corrosion or sediment buildup betweenthe pivoted members and adjacent surfaces. Protective lubricantsdeteriorate from engine heat or eventually are washed away. As a result,actuation of the release member to place the mechanism in unlatchedcondition may not be followed by automatic restoration of pivotedmembers to their normal position. The restoring springs may not bestrong enough to overcome the friction resisting free pivotal movementof the pivoted members of the mechanism.

Accordingly, it is the object of the present invention to provide alatch assembly that is particularly adapted to meet the requirements ofa satisfactory hood holddown device even after long exposure tocorrosion or other fouling matter.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The latch assembly embodying the presentinvention has the function of releasably latching a hinged closurestructure, such as a vehicle engine compartment hood, to a vehicle bodycompartment structure, such as a compartment structure housing theengine. The assembly comprises a latch mechanism mounted on one of thestructures, preferably the structure framing the engine compartment,adapted to coact with keeper elements carried on the other structure,preferably the hinged closure or hood.

The latch mechanism is characterized in that it has a primary latchinglever to hold the closure structure in fully closed condition and asecondary latching lever to hold the closure structure in a positionproximate to fully closed position. The latch mechanism includes aprimary pawl engageable with the primary latching lever and a secondarypawl engageable with the secondary latching lever. The secondary andprimary pawls are engageable sequentially with the respective secondaryand primary latching levers as the closure structure is moved fromopened to closed position to hold the respective latching levers inlatched condition. Each of the latching levers and the pawl engageabletherewith have opposed cam surfaces adapted to abut when the latchinglever is moved toward latching position with its respective pawldisplaced from latch lever holding position thereby to urge the pawlinto said position. A spring means normally biases the latching leverstoward unlatched position and the respective pawls toward their latchinglevers. The mechanism also includes a release means operative todisengage the pawls from the latching levers to permit movement of theclosure structure from closed to open position.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING Further features and advantages of thepresent invention will be explained in greater detail making referenceto the description, which now follows, reference being had to thedrawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a view of the latch mechanism of the latch assembly embodyingthe present invention with its component parts concealed within thelatch mechanism housing except for portions of the latching levers asthe appear when in unlatched conditions;

FIG. 2 is a view of the latch assembly with parts of the latch mechanismhousing cutaway to expose the latching levers and pawl and illustratingthe relationship of the components when latching is through thesecondary latching lever and secondary pawl;

FIG. 3 is a view in part similar to FIG. 2 illustrating the componentsas they appear when the latching action is through the primary latchinglever and primary pawl;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged vertical section through the line 44 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged horizontal section taken on the line 55 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged horizontal section taken on the line 6-6 of FIG.1; and

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary plan view in the direction of the arrow 7 inFIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring now to the drawings, thelatch assembly, generally designated 10, embodying the present inventioncomprises a latch mechanism 11 and coacting keeper elements I2 and 13(see FIG. 2). The latch mechanism 11 is adapted to be bolted on astructural member (not shown) defining a compartment such as a vehicleengine compartment. The keeper elements 12 and 13 are shown as rollededges of an aperture in a frame member or panel which is part of ahinged closure structure, such as the hood of a vehicle enginecompartment.

It will be understood that the latch mechanism could be mounted on thehood structure and the keeper elements could be part of or mounted onthe compartment framing member. The conventional practice, however, isto mount the latch mechanism on the compartment framing structure thusminimizing the free end weight of the closure or hood structure.

The latch mechanism 11 comprises a support or housing I4 formed of apair of stamped sheet metal members 15 and I6. As best seen in FIG. I,the support or housing has a vertically elongated nose portion 17 thatterminates in tapered sidewalls l8 and 19. The tapered sidewallsfunction as a pilot to guide the nose portion into the aperture betweenthe keeper elements l2 and I3.

Housed within the nose 17 in a chamber 21 are a pair of latching levers22 and 23. The latching lever 22 may hereinafter be referred to as theprimary latching lever and the lever 23 as the secondary latching lever.Both levers are pivotal about a common pivot shaft 24. The respectiveends of the shaft 24 project through the housing forming members 15 and16 and are riveted over as at 25. Each latching lever has keeper elementengaging portions projecting substantially radially outwardly from thepivot axis defined by the shaft 24. As best seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, thekeeper element engaging portions of the primary latching lever 22comprise a slender lower finger 26 and a somewhat thicker L-shapedfinger 27 forming a bifurcation 28 adapted to receive the keeper element12 in latched condition of the closure or hood. The

secondary latching lever 23 also has a slender lower finger 29 and asubstantially L-shaped upper finger 31 forming a bifurcation 32 adaptedto receive keeper element 13.

The primary and secondary latching levers 22 and 23 are pivotal incounterdirections about the pivot shaft 24. The respective latchingfingers 26-27 and 29-31 project through openings or slots 33 and 34 inthe housing nose portion 17.

Each of the latching levers is paired with a detent or pawl. The primarylatching lever 22 is paired with a primary detent or pawl 35 pivotallysupported on a shaft or pivot stud 36. Similarly, the second latchinglever 23 is paired with a secondary detent or pawl 37 pivotallysupported on a shaft 38. As best seen in FIG. 5, the two pivot shafts 37and 38 are spaced from each other and extend between the housing formingmembers and 16. The ends of the shaft 37 and 38 are riveted over as at39 so that these two shafts and the previously described shaft 24function to hold the members 15 and 16 together to house the latchmechanism components.

Each of the detents or pawls has an abutment engageable with an opposingabutment on its paired latching lever. The primary latching lever has adepending abutment 41 adapted to be engaged on its surface 42 by theface 43 of a hooklike abutment 44 on the primary pawl or detent 35. Thesecondary latching lever 23 has a depending abutment 45 adapted to beengaged on its face 46 by the face 47 of a hooklike abutment 48 on thesecondary pawl 37. The abutting faces 4243 of the primary latching lever22 and its paired detent or pawl 35 are rotationally displaced from thecorresponding abutting faces 46-47 of the secondary latching lever 23and its paired detent or pawl 37. This rotational displacement resultsin sequential engagement of first one and then the other of the pairs oflatching levers and pawls as the closure structure is moved from openedto closed position, as will be more fully explained.

The latching lever 22 and its paired detent or pawl 35 as well as thelatching lever 23 and its paired detent or pawl 37 are biased byrespective springs 49 and 51. As best seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, forexample, the spring 49 has a coiled central portion with elongated legportions 52 and 53 extending therefrom. The leg portion 52 is hookedinto an aperture 54 in the primary pawl 35 in relation to the pivot axis36 of the latter to urge the pawl in a counterclockwise direction asviewed in the drawings. The leg 53 of the spring 49 is hooked over acomer 55 of the primary pawl 22.

By a comparison of FIGS. 2 and 3, itis noted that movement of thelatching lever 22 in a clockwise direction results in a windup of thespring 49. The reaction force exerted by the spring 49 as it is wound uphas the twofold effect of urging the primary latching lever 22 in acounterclockwise or unlatching direction and the primary detent or pawlin counterclockwise direction, i.e., in a direction toward the latchinglever 22.

The spring 51 is similarly structurally and functionally related to thesecondary latching lever 23 and its paired detent or pawl 37 The springs49 and 51 are designed to urge the latching levers in unlatcheddirection and the pawls 35 and 37 toward their paired latching leversunder normal frictional conditions. This friction is primarily thatbetween the levers and pawls and the pivot shafts on which they aremounted. Latch mechanisms of the type embodying the present inventionconventionally are mounted at the front end of the vehicle and aresubject to deposits of road dust and mud and also to the corrosiveeffect of deicing agents used on the road surfaces. It is thus possiblefor the latch mechanism lubricant to be washed away and for sediment andcorrosive byproducts to create increased frictional resistance betweenthe movable latch mechanism parts.

A feature of the present invention is the provision of opposed cammingsurfaces on the respective pairs of latching levers and detents orpawls. That is, the primary pawl 35 has an upstanding projection orcamming portion 56 which lies in the path of the surface 57 on thedepending abutment 41 of the primary latching lever 22. The secondarypawl 37 has a camming surface 58 which is adapted to lie in the path ofa curved camming surface 59 on the lower edge of the depending abutment45 of the secondary latching device 23.

The primary and secondary pawls 35 and 37 have a lost motion connectiontherebetween so that to a degree and under certain conditions movementof either pawl results in corresponding movement of the other pawl. Theprimary pawl 35 has a flanged pin 61 fixed thereon, the pin 61 having anend portion 62 projecting through an enlarged aperture 63 in the pawl37.

The detents or pawls 35 and 37 are disengageable from their respectivelatching levers by actuation of a release lever 64 which is pivotallysupported on a pivot stud 65 mounted on a latch lever bracket 66. Thebracket 66 is supported in juxtaposition to the housing member 15 by theriveted over ends of the pivot shafts 36 and 38 on which the primary andsecondary latch are pivotable (see FIG. 5).

One arm 67 of the lever 64 extends across the latch mechanism to aposition in which it is accessible for swinging movement in a clockwisedirection as viewed in FIG. 7. The lever 64 has a short actuating arm 68which extends at substantially right angles to the arm 67. The free endof the arm 68 is adapted to abut the substantially vertical edge 69 ofthe primary pawl 35. The release lever 64 is spring loaded by a spring71 encompassing the pivot stud 65 with one end of the spring beinganchored in the bracket 66 and the other end being hooked into the leverarm 67.

OPERATION The operation of the latch assembly 10 embodying the presentinvention may best be followed with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2 of thedrawings. In FIG. 1, the primary latching lever 22 and the secondarylatching lever 23 are shown as they would appear when the hinged closurestructure, such as the vehicle hood, has been raised to provide accessto the vehicle engine compartment. As the closure structure or hood islowered, the keeper elements 12 and 13 move downwardly over the taperedsidewalls of 18 and 19 of the nose portion 17 of the housing containingthe latch mechanism components. The keeper elements 12 and 13 engage theextremities of the lower fingers 26 and 29, respectively, on thelatching levers 22 and 23. This results in the latching levers 22 and 23being rotated in counterdirections, the primary latching lever 22 beingrotated in a clockwise direction and the secondary latching lever beingrotated in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in FIGS. 2 and 3. Theprimary pawl 35 and the secondary pawl 37 normally are spring biasedtoward the latching levers by the springs 49 and 51, respectively.Therefor, as the secondary latching lever 23 continues to rotate in acounterclockwise direction, its depending abutment 45 will ride over theabutment 48 on the secondary pawl 37 until it reaches a point at whichthe abutment 48 is able to move upwardly to bring the surface 46 on thelatching lever abutment 45 and the surface 47 on the pawl abutment 48into face-to-face contact as shown in FIG. 2. As soon as this occurs,the hood or closure structure is held in what is known as a secondarylatched position. That is, it is restrained from movement in an upwardor opening direction. In this condition, however, the hood is not in afully latched condition.

As the secondary latching lever 23 is moving in a counterclockwisedirection from the FIG. 1 unlatched position toward the secondarylatched position shown in FIG. 2, the primary latching lever 22 also isbeing moved in a clockwise direction by engagement of the keeper element12 with its lower finger 26. As the downward movement of the closurestructure or hood continues, the abutting faces 46 and 47 on thesecondary latching lever abutment 45 and the abutment 48 on thesecondary pawl 37 move away from each other. In the event that movementof the latching levers is interrupted before the primary latching leverand the primary pawl become operative to hold the closure structure orhood in latched condition, upward or opening movement of the closurestructure or hood under the influence of its counterbalancing springscan occur to the extent required to again bring the abutting surfaces 46and 47 into engagement with each other. This is possible because theabutment on the secondary pawl 37 remains in the path of the abutment 45on the secondary latching lever once it is placed in such relationship.

Upon the closure structure or hood being brought to a fully closedposition, the abutment 41 on the primary latching lever will move beyondits interference position relative to the abutment 44 on the primarypawl 35. The primary pawl is then able to move upwardly to bring itsabutment face 43 into engagement with the abutment face 42 on theabutment 41 of the primary latching lever 22, as shown in FIG. 3. Inthis condition, the primary latching lever has the main function ofholding the closure structure or hood in fully closed or latchedcondition. The secondary latching lever 23 and its related secondarypawl 37 are always in condition to become engaged to hold the hood orclosure structure in proximate latched condition after a slight degreeof upward movement occurs should the primary latching lever fail tofunction.

If, for any reason, springs 49 and 51 do not bias the primary andsecondary pawls 35 and 37 respectively toward the latching levers 22 and23 as the closure structure or hood is brought down into closedposition, the opposed camming surfaces on the latching levers and theirrespective pawls will insure that the pawls are moved into properlatching relationship to the primary and secondary latching levers.Referring again to FIG. 2, in the event that the secondary pawl 37 doesnot move in a clockwise direction from its unlatched position, aposition in which the abutment 48 is below the abutment 47 on thesecondary latching lever, the curved surface 58 will lie in abuttingrelation to the curved surface 59 on the lower edge of the secondarylatching lever abutment 45. As the secondary latch 23 moves in acounterclockwise direction, the surfaces 59 and 58 will abut and causethe secondary pawl 37 to be moved in a clockwise direction. This bringsthe abutment 47 upwardly to the position shown in FIG. 2 in which itlies in opposition to movement of the abutment 45 on the secondarylatching lever 23. This prevents the latter from being rotated in aclockwise or unlatching direction. Similarly, if for any reason theprimary latching pawl 35 does not move from the position shown in FIG. 2to its FIG. 3 position upon movement of the abutment 41 on the primarylatching lever 22 out of the path of the abutment 44 on the primary pawl35, the surface 57 of the abutment 41 of the primary latching lever 22will engage the upstanding arm 56 on the primary pawl 35. This willcause the latter to move in a counterclockwise direction thereby raisingthe abutment 44 into opposition to the abutment 41 on the primarylatching lever 22 so the condition shown in FIG. 3 will be reached. Theopposed camming surfaces on the primary and secondary latching leversand their respective primary and secondary pawls thus insure that thepawls always will function to hold their latching levers in latchedcondition.

Unlatching operation of the latch assembly is through actuation of therelease lever 64. Movement of the release lever 64 in a clockwisedirection as viewed in FIG. 7 results in the end portion of the leverarm 68 abutting the surface 69 of the primary pawl 35 causing the latterto be moved in a clockwise direction from the position shown in FIG. 3.As soon as the abutment-44 drops out of the path of the primary latchinglever abutment 41, the primary latching lever will be urged by thespring 49 toward unlatched position. Movement of the primary pawl'35 istransmitted to the secondary pawl 37 through the pin 61 which rides onthe bottom wall of the aperture 63 in the secondary pawl 37. Furthermovement of the primary pawl 35 beyond the position shown in FIG. 2 byactuation of the lever 64 causes the secondary pawl to be moved in acounterclockwise direction. The abutment 48 on the secondary pawl thendrops below the level of the abutment 45 on the secondary latching lever23 permitting the latter to be freely movable in a clockwise direction.As both the primary and secondary latching levers are restored to theFIG. 1 position, the keeper elements 12 and 13 are able to exit from thebifurcations 28 and 32 of the primary and secondary latching levers sothat the closure structure or hood may be lifted to a fully openedposition.

It is to be understood that this invention is not limited to the exactconstruction illustrated and described above but that various changesand modifications may be made without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

We claim:

ll. Latch assembly for releasably latching a hinged closure structure toa vehicle body compartment structure,

the latch assembly comprising a pair of spaced parallel keeper elementson one of the structures and a latch mechanism mounted on the other ofthe structures,

the latch mechanism comprising a pair of latching levers pivotallymounted on a support member for pivotal movement in counter directions,

each latching lever having keeper element engaging portions projectingsubstantially radially away from the pivot axis of the respectivelatching lever for engagement with a respective keeper element, a pairof detent members each paired with one of the latching members andpivotally mounted on the support,

the detent members each having an abutment engageable with an opposingabutment on its paired latching lever to hold the latter in latchedposition,

the respective pairs of abutments being rotationally displaced toprovide for sequential engagement of first one and then the other of thepaired latching levers and detent members as the closure member is movedfrom an unlatched to a partially latched and then to a fully latchedposition relative to the vehicle body compartment structure,

spring means biasing the respective latching levers toward unlatchedcondition and the detent levers toward their paired latching levers, atleast one latching lever and its paired detent member having opposedcamming portions lying in abutting relation to each other in unlatchedpositions of the latching levers,

the opposed camming portions upon movement of the latching levers by andrelative to the keeper elements abutting each other to urge the detentmember into holding engagement with its paired latching lever in theevent the spring means fails to do so following movement of the latchinglever to unlatched position to release the closure structure from thebody structure,

and release lever means operative to disengage the detent members fromthe paired latching levers when the closure structure is in latchedcondition on the body structure.

2. A latch assembly according to claim 1. in which:

the latching levers are pivotal on a common pivot shaft, and

the detent members are pivotal on spaced pivot shafts.

3. A latch assembly according to claim 2, in which:

the support member comprises a housing having a tapered nose portionwith openings in opposite sides thereof,

the nose portion being adapted to project between the spaced keeperelements in latched position of the closure structure,

and the keeper element engaging portions projecting outwardly of thenose portion through the openings therein.

4. A latch assembly according to claim 1, in which:

the support member comprises a housing having a tapered nose portionwith openings in opposite sides thereof,

the nose portion being adapted to project between the spaced-keeperelements in latched position of the closure structure,

and the keeper element engaging portions of the latch mechanismprojecting outwardly of the nose portion through the openings therein.

5. A latch assembly for releasably latching a hinged closure structureto a vehicle body compartment structure,

the latch assembly comprising a pair of spaced keeper elements on one ofthe structures and a latch mechanism mounted on the other of thestructures,

the latch mechanism comprising a primary latching lever and a secondarylatching lever each pivotally mounted on a common support member forpivotal movement in counter directions,

each latching lever having keeper element engaging portions projectingsubstantially radially away from the axis about which it pivots,

the keeper element engaging portions being engageable with a respectivekeeper element,

a primary pawl paired with the primary latching lever and a secondarypawl paired with the secondary latching lever,

the primary pawl and secondary pawl each being pivotally mounted on thesame support member as the latching levers,

the detent members each having an abutment engageable with an opposingabutment on its paired latching lever to hold the latter in latchedposition,

the respective pairs of abutments being rotationally displaced toprovide for sequential engagement of first the secondary latching leverby the secondary pawl and then the primary latching lever by the primarypawl as the closure member is moved from an unlatched to a partiallylatched and then to a fully latched position relative to the vehiclebody compartment structure,

spring means biasing the respective latching levers toward unlatchedcondition and the pawls toward their paired latching levers,

at least one latching lever and its paired pawl having opposed cammingportions lying in abutting relation to each other in unlatched positionsof the latching levers,

the opposed camming portions upon movement of the latching levers by andrelative to the keeper elements abutting each other to urge the pawlinto holding engagement with its paired latching lever in the event thespring means is ineffective to do so following movement of the latchinglever to unlatched position for release of the closure structure fromthe body structure,

and release lever means operative to disengage the pawls from thelatching levers when the closure structure is in latched condition onthe body structure.

6. A latch assembly according to claim 5, in which:

the latching levers are pivotal about a common pivot shaft,

and

the pawls are pivoted on spaced pivot shafts.

7. A latch assembly according to claim 6, in which:

the support member comprises a housing having a tapered nose portionwith openings in opposite sides thereof,

the nose portion being adapted to project between the spaced keeperelements in latched position of the closure structure,

and the keeper element engaging portions of the primary and secondarylatching levers projecting outwardly of the nose portion through theopenings therein,

8. A latch assembly according to claim 5, in which:

the support member comprises a housing having a tapered nose portionwith openings in opposite sides thereof,

the nose portion being adapted to project between the spaced keeperelements in latched position of the closure structure, and the keeperelement engaging portions of the primary and secondary latching leversprojecting outwardly of the nose portions through the openings therein.

9. A latch assembly according to claim 8, in which: the spring meanscomprises a spring common to each paired latching lever and pawl. 10. Alatch assembly for releasably latching a hinged clo- 10 sure structureto a vehicle body compartment structure,

the latch assembly comprising a latch mechanism mounted on one of thestructures coacting with keeper elements on the other of thestructures,the latch mechanism being constructed in that it has a pnmary latchinglever to hold the closure structure in fully closed condition and asecondary latching lever to hold the closure structure in a positionproximate to fully closed position,

the primary and secondary latching levers being pivotal in counterdirections about a common pivot shaft,

a primary pawl engageable with the primary latching lever and asecondary pawl engageable with the secondary latching lever,

the secondary and primary pawls being engageable sequentially with therespective secondary and primary latching levers, as the closurestructure is moved from opened to closed position, to hold therespective latching levers in latched condition,

the primary and secondary pawls being pivotal in counterdirections aboutspaced pivot shafts,

each of the latching levers and the pawl engageable therewith havingopposed cam surfaces adapted to abut when the latching lever is movedtoward latching position with its respective pawl displaced from latchlever holding position thereby to urge the pawl into latching leverholding position,

the opposed cam surfaces on each pair of latching levers and relatedpawls being located to abut between the pivot axes of each of thelatching levers and related pawls to urge the pawls toward its latchinglever,

spring means normally biasing the latching levers toward unlatchedcondition and the respective pawls toward their latching levers,

release means operative to disengage the pawls from the latching leversto permit movement of the closure structure from closed to openedposition,

the primary and secondary pawls having overlapping portions with a lostmotion connecting means therebetween so that movement of one pawl willcause movement of the other pawl after predetermined relative movementtherebetween,

the latching levers and related pawls being housed within a housinghaving a tapered nose portion with openings in opposite sides thereof,

the nose portion being adapted to project between the keeper elements inlatched position of the closure structure,

the latching levers having keeper element engaging portions projectingoutwardly of the nose portion through the openings therein.

1. Latch assembly for releasably latching a hinged closure structure toa vehicle body compartment structure, the latch assembly comprising apair of spaced parallel keeper elements on one of the structures and alatch mechanism mounted on the other of the structures, the latchmechanism comprising a pair of latching levers pivotally mounted on asupport member for pivotal movement in counter directions, each latchinglever having keeper element engaging portions projecting substantiallyradially away from the pivot axis of the respective latching lever forengagement with a respective keeper element, a pair of detent memberseach paired with one of the latching members and pivotally mounted onthe support, the detent members each having an abutment engageable withan opposing abutment on its paired latching lever to hold the latter inlatched position, the respective pairs of abutments being rotationallydisplaced to provide for sequential engagement of first one and then theother of the paired latching levers and detent members as the closuremember is moved from an unlatched to a partially latched and then to afully latched position relative to the vehicle body compartmentstructure, spring means biasing the respective latching levers towardunlatched condition and the detent levers toward their paired latchinglevers, at least one latching lever and its paired detent member havingopposed camming portions lying in abutting relation to each other inunlatched positions of the latching levers, the opposed camming portionsupon movement of the latching levers by and relative to the keeperelements abutting each other to urge the detent member into holdingengagement with its paired latching lever in the event the spring meansfails to do so following movement of the latching lever to unlatchedposition to release the closure structure from the body structure, andrelease lever means operative to disengage the Detent members from thepaired latching levers when the closure structure is in latchedcondition on the body structure.
 2. A latch assembly according to claim1, in which: the latching levers are pivotal on a common pivot shaft,and the detent members are pivotal on spaced pivot shafts.
 3. A latchassembly according to claim 2, in which: the support member comprises ahousing having a tapered nose portion with openings in opposite sidesthereof, the nose portion being adapted to project between the spacedkeeper elements in latched position of the closure structure, and thekeeper element engaging portions projecting outwardly of the noseportion through the openings therein.
 4. A latch assembly according toclaim 1, in which: the support member comprises a housing having atapered nose portion with openings in opposite sides thereof, the noseportion being adapted to project between the spaced keeper elements inlatched position of the closure structure, and the keeper elementengaging portions of the latch mechanism projecting outwardly of thenose portion through the openings therein.
 5. A latch assembly forreleasably latching a hinged closure structure to a vehicle bodycompartment structure, the latch assembly comprising a pair of spacedkeeper elements on one of the structures and a latch mechanism mountedon the other of the structures, the latch mechanism comprising a primarylatching lever and a secondary latching lever each pivotally mounted ona common support member for pivotal movement in counter directions, eachlatching lever having keeper element engaging portions projectingsubstantially radially away from the axis about which it pivots, thekeeper element engaging portions being engageable with a respectivekeeper element, a primary pawl paired with the primary latching leverand a secondary pawl paired with the secondary latching lever, theprimary pawl and secondary pawl each being pivotally mounted on the samesupport member as the latching levers, the detent members each having anabutment engageable with an opposing abutment on its paired latchinglever to hold the latter in latched position, the respective pairs ofabutments being rotationally displaced to provide for sequentialengagement of first the secondary latching lever by the secondary pawland then the primary latching lever by the primary pawl as the closuremember is moved from an unlatched to a partially latched and then to afully latched position relative to the vehicle body compartmentstructure, spring means biasing the respective latching levers towardunlatched condition and the pawls toward their paired latching levers,at least one latching lever and its paired pawl having opposed cammingportions lying in abutting relation to each other in unlatched positionsof the latching levers, the opposed camming portions upon movement ofthe latching levers by and relative to the keeper elements abutting eachother to urge the pawl into holding engagement with its paired latchinglever in the event the spring means is ineffective to do so followingmovement of the latching lever to unlatched position for release of theclosure structure from the body structure, and release lever meansoperative to disengage the pawls from the latching levers when theclosure structure is in latched condition on the body structure.
 6. Alatch assembly according to claim 5, in which: the latching levers arepivotal about a common pivot shaft, and the pawls are pivoted on spacedpivot shafts.
 7. A latch assembly according to claim 6, in which: thesupport member comprises a housing having a tapered nose portion withopenings in opposite sides thereof, the nose portion being adapted toproject between the spaced keeper elements in latched position of theclosure structure, and the keeper element engaging portions of theprimary and secondary latching levers projEcting outwardly of the noseportion through the openings therein.
 8. A latch assembly according toclaim 5, in which: the support member comprises a housing having atapered nose portion with openings in opposite sides thereof, the noseportion being adapted to project between the spaced keeper elements inlatched position of the closure structure, and the keeper elementengaging portions of the primary and secondary latching leversprojecting outwardly of the nose portions through the openings therein.9. A latch assembly according to claim 8, in which: the spring meanscomprises a spring common to each paired latching lever and pawl.
 10. Alatch assembly for releasably latching a hinged closure structure to avehicle body compartment structure, the latch assembly comprising alatch mechanism mounted on one of the structures coacting with keeperelements on the other of the structures, the latch mechanism beingcharacterized in that it has a primary latching lever to hold theclosure structure in fully closed condition and a secondary latchinglever to hold the closure structure in a position proximate to fullyclosed position, the primary and secondary latching levers being pivotalin counter directions about a common pivot shaft, a primary pawlengageable with the primary latching lever and a secondary pawlengageable with the secondary latching lever, the secondary and primarypawls being engageable sequentially with the respective secondary andprimary latching levers, as the closure structure is moved from openedto closed position, to hold the respective latching levers in latchedcondition, the primary and secondary pawls being pivotal in counterdirections about spaced pivot shafts, each of the latching levers andthe pawl engageable therewith having opposed cam surfaces adapted toabut when the latching lever is moved toward latching position with itsrespective pawl displaced from latch lever holding position thereby tourge the pawl into latching lever holding position, the opposed camsurfaces on each pair of latching levers and related pawls being locatedto abut between the pivot axes of each of the latching levers andrelated pawls to urge the pawls toward its latching lever, spring meansnormally biasing the latching levers toward unlatched condition and therespective pawls toward their latching levers, release means operativeto disengage the pawls from the latching levers to permit movement ofthe closure structure from closed to opened position, the primary andsecondary pawls having overlapping portions with a lost motionconnecting means therebetween so that movement of one pawl will causemovement of the other pawl after predetermined relative movementtherebetween, the latching levers and related pawls being housed withina housing having a tapered nose portion with openings in opposite sidesthereof, the nose portion being adapted to project between the keeperelements in latched position of the closure structure, the latchinglevers having keeper element engaging portions projecting outwardly ofthe nose portion through the openings therein.